My Blog

You're Gonna Miss This

Alysa — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 08:07:20 GMT

That's the title of this country song I love about missing times in your life... those that when you are living them you think you just want them to end so you can get on to the next best moment, but you realize later those were some darn good times! Some days with toddlers are oh so trying, but mostly, I watch these two little girls and think, "Man, I'm gonna miss this!" Mil and Lil are so cute together... their giggling, chasing each other, hugging, lovability... the new things they do each day. I'm telling you it's just so magical. I just know that these days are going to pass so quickly, I wish I had video cameras running in every room to capture every little silly thing. Just tonight, Lil kept blowing me kisses as I said goodnight to her. Not that she hasn't blown kisses for months; it was just the first time she'd done it in response to me kissing her goodnight. She just thought it was the most fun thing. I'm sure my response of "aah" and my beaming smile probably encouraged her just a little. And today, TJ starting playing a scavenger hunt game where she'd have to find her special toys by following his hints. She got such a kick out of it, I think he had to play it for a few hours with her! I bought a baby boy doll yesterday that both the girls play with fondly. Milla especially likes feeding him his bottle, and Lil just likes holding him. I think that Milla will be a really gentle older sister, but Lil will need constant supervision with the new little one. She'll do things we tell her not to because she thinks it's funny. She's so stubborn and always wants her way, but when she's being cute... boy is she cute! Milla is such a beautiful girl herself. She's back taking ballet/tap and loves getting dressed up. It's time to roll on into bed... I'm up way later than usual. I'm gonna miss this... :) alysa

Sugar and Spice...

Alysa — Sat, 05 Jul 2008 23:43:54 GMT

Cute things about Mil and Lil you can't know from photos: When we call Milla almost anything like "silly" or "crazy" or "monkey", she responds by saying, "I'm not ......, I'm Milla May!" Lil eats a ton, and has learned to open the frig... her favorite thing is yogurt. Milla is very proud of being a big girl. She is mostly potty trained now, and has started to have very definite opinions about what to wear, what to put in her hair, and what she wants (or more so, doesn't want) to eat. Lil is a climber. Nothing on a bed, dresser, or dining table is safe anymore. Lil also wants to be a big girl and tries to sit in Milla's chair at the table before Milla can get there. She also loves to sit on Milla's potty, but doesn't really get what it is for, except for knowing the word potty. Milla has very cute moments and very stubborn moments. It has become harder and harder to get her to take a nap, so on the days she doesn't she can get very cranky. She learned to ask for milk (which we try to avoid giving her too much of in lieu of food) and say she's going to sleep for a nap, but then doesn't. Mommy and Daddy now know it's a game too. Lil also has become a creature of comfort. She'll climb into bed by herself and tuck herself in, propping herself up on a pillow and pulling the cover over her. She also finds very comfortable spots on or near us... just climbs on up and makes herself at home! Milla favorite word is now "why?" She will use it endlessly and is really testing our ability to explain just about everything! Some movies she used to watch without question now evoke an endless parade of "why's". Lil watches a lot of TV and videos along with Milla. Her favorite is Go Diego Go. As soon as the music starts she starts shouting "Go, go, go!". If we ever have to get stuff done, we know we can keep them still for at least 20 minutes of a Dora, Diego, or Little Einsteins. Milla loves to make new friends, be it older people, or other kids at the playground, pool, or school. She particularly loves older girls. Lil loves carrying a towel or blanket up to one of us saying "cold, cold" and having us wrap her up and carry her around in it. Mil and Lil both are taking advantage of having the coolest Dad ever. A nearly daily treat is either a living room creation of a tent/slide combination of blankets, mattresses, and bungee cord, or a warm outdoor bubble bath. Even though Lil still can't communicate with sentences, she's learned to let Dad know she wants the living room jungle gym by dragging the green blanket to him. Dad also makes cool swings in the backyard. Milla loves to just hang from a padded bar and leap off the deck, flying over the grass and back to the deck and caught by Mom or Dad. Just today Lil tried it and held on and swung just like her sister! Little daredevils!

Ooops... we did it again!!

Alysa — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 06:12:23 GMT

I haven't posted this, and haven't told too many people, but I finally decided it was time... WE ARE PREGNANT AGAIN!! I know we'll get the question: "Were you trying?" Well, we obviously weren't trying hard enough NOT to have another baby! :-) I guess we could have waited a little longer and given ourselves a bit more breathing room, but as I like to joke, I guess there are just too many little souls out there dying to be our kids! Those little suckers don't let a chance go by! The first moment I'm fertile and they're in the right place... ka-pow! They got me! So I'm just passing into my second trimester, and I had an early ultrasound. The technician was fairly certain that this time there is a little (or not so little if you know my hubby) man-child growing and kicking and flipping around inside me. It makes sense as this pregnancy has been much different compared to the girls... worse to be precise! Much more nausea and general uckiness. I'm supposed to be heading into the good part of the pregnancy now, but I'm not feeling much better yet! Enough complaining! We are thrilled and excited to bring another Brennan into the fold. Milla understands that a baby boy is growing in Mommy's tummy. Of course, she now thinks she has a baby girl in hers! She is definitely letting her creative juices flow, coming up with all kinds of interesting ideas on her own. She is so strong and sweet at the same time. She's such a princess, but fearless and very physical. She's now taking art, sports, and dance, and I'm not sure what her favorite is. She is growing up simply beautifully. Lil is her own little person now. She enjoys many of the same things that Milla does, but you can tell how different her temperament is. She is more aggressive, less polite, and more demanding. Part of that is probably just her age, as she's in that phase where she can't speak well enough to ask for what she wants and gets frustrated. She does have a ton of words, though! She understands so much and takes action on most things to entertain herself. I'll find her sitting down with a book and a blanket over her lap, or watching a movie on Milla's little machine which she turned on and started the movie herself! She's still less than 15 months old. In Brennan family news, in case you haven't heard, we are moving forward designing our new home which will replace the Beach House. In anticipation of this and the new baby, we will be moving to San Diego around Sept/Oct and living there for a couple of years in a much bigger house until our new, amazing Beach House is built. Enjoy the photos of the last couple of months at my girls' website... if you don't know the website, write to me and I'll send it to you! Oh, and you should have all gotten my latest news about the contest I'm in on the Sundance Channel. I'm one of 25 semi-finalists and I need your vote to take my BIG Idea to the next level. Please visit http://www.sundancechannel.com/bigideacontest and create an account to view my minute-long video (The Conscious Consumer - third row, far left) and VOTE!! Help me help others to change their lives, and our world! Thanks, Alysa

The Wonderful World of Fantasy (and Dance!)

Alysa — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 05:59:36 GMT

So Milla has grown really fond of stories. Sure, we've ready books since she was a baby, but now she's going through a phase of wanting me to tell her stories as she's going to sleep. Somehow the books always seemed more real, because there were pictures, and they were actually tangible. But the stories... they are just pure fantasy made up in my head! At first I was really nervous... I didn't know what to say! A story? Where do I start? I repeated stories of movies she'd seen and books we'd read. But those started to bore me, and slowly I started actually trying to invent stories. Now, I can go on and on about princesses and blue horses without having a clue what I was going to say or how the story was going to go when I started! I'm not trying to brag or anything, I'm just saying that it is really interesting having your imagination inspired and tested by a 2 and a 1/2 year old. I'm thankful for the opportunity to jump into fantasy. I also find it interesting that Milla is so curious to be told stories so that she can imagine things in her head instead of wanting to read books and see pictures. I love that! It's such a progression from Lil's age, where things are just so fascinating that are right in front of her, to Milla's age. Now Milla has seen things and can imagine on her own. I don't think it will be long before she's telling me stories of her own! :-) She's learning fast, and has an appetite for it. I've enrolled her in various classes... art, sports, swimming (Lil too), and of course, dance! She's is suprisingly attuned to the teacher and really focuses. It's so adorable! She just loves being around other kids and gets so excited to see her fellow students. Her class is ballet with a little tap at the end. Her favorite part, however, may be getting to dress up like a "princess"! As much as Milla likes to dance, however, I think Lil is going to love it! You can see how music just grabs her attention and she bounces or spins whenever music is playing. On Saturday I took them to an Earth Day Festival, and these two guys were rapping (yes, that's right - environmental rap! Keep it Green, yo!). Milla just ran around chasing the other kids, but Lil hollered until I let her out of the stroller, and then she bounced to the rap! I think I'm going to be one of those moms saying "As soon as my kid could walk, she was dancing!" Tee Hee! I can see it now!

Lil's now One Year Old!

Alysa — Sun, 23 Mar 2008 07:53:15 GMT

Oh my goodness! At what age does a child stop getting cuter? If I thought my girls were adorable last month, I need to start coming up with new words to describe them. I didn't know my heart could get any fuller of their love and beauty, inside and out. Sure, they have their moments of wanting-to-throw-something frustration, but really, those are so infrequent compared to the bounty of heartwarming moments that just make you want to sigh. I can only give examples, and send all of you an invitation to experience them for yourselves. I think the best moment is coming home, even if I've just been out on a little errand, and getting huge hugs accompanied by a big "Momma!" from Milla. Milla will go on to talk about how I'm home and how she missed me while Lil will find her way into my other arm and give me an equally big hug and huge smile. Another great moment is watching the girls play with each other. They have their own little language and they will talk back and forth, which usually escalates into dueling screams. Usually this is accompanied by running around the house in some format, be it crawling, walking, walking/falling. Lil has actually started running in the last couple of days - and she just turned 1 on March 6th! She is even more fearless than Milla, climbing onto arms of chairs to reach all kinds of off-limit things. Lili also has developed an incredible vocabulary. I haven't tried to count the number of words, but she'll repeat just about anything, and volunteers words I had no idea she knew, including many two-syllable words. She is learning very fast, in large part to Milla, who has a very sweet voice and isn't afraid to use it. She is having a little trouble with pronouns, using my instead of I, as in "My did it! My did it!" or "My big girl." I always correct her, even though I find it really cute. And she is turning into quite the big girl. Potty training is going very well. Milla does a couple of interesting social things. People now always ask her her name. She knows full well what it is, but what does she say in response? Princess! This has become a game now and whenever we ask her ourselves she responds "Princess" with a mischievous smile. She'll go on to say how I'm the Queen and Daddy is King. I really didn't think we imparted the princess mentality into her, but apparently we did. Another thing she does is she'll go up and boldly say hi to people, but I've learned it's really just a ploy. She typically only says hi to kids whose toys she wants to play with. At least she always asks! As I mentioned on their webpage, we went to Hawaii for a week over Lil's birthday, and spent a lot of time in the pool and on the beach. We came home to start swim classes, then ran off to Palm Desert for a couple of days and more warm pool time. They are getting quite comfortable in the water. Milla is convinced she wants to surf from watching "Surf's Up". I bought her a boogie board in Hawaii which she calls her surfboard. Once again, I'm up late and should wrap this up. Those vacation photos will be up next month; I'm behind and only had time to post Feb's pictures! :) Alysa

Lil's Walking and Mil's Talking!

Alysa — Sun, 10 Feb 2008 06:43:31 GMT

2008 is off to a flying start. Lil officially started walking all over the house a couple of days before her 11 month birthday. She got into lots of stuff before and now it's gonna get so much worse! She's clever, that one. She so wants to get to things Mommy or Daddy take away from her, and reach to places she hasn't explored yet. She's ambitious, inventive, and a problem solver. Can't reach on top of that desk? Why, Lil will just get anything sizable, put it in front of the desk and stand on it. Problem solved! She is fearless, and doesn't hesitate to crawl up and down the stairs given the chance, or plunge off the bed, thankfully on her belly, feet first as we've taught her. She is an expert climber and is really aware of her center of gravity. Mil is just a little chatterbox! At home, she talks about everything, and when we are out, she has a habit of repeating just about everything I say. Namely, at the grocery store, when I'm running around saying, "Oh, we need eggs" or "Yummy, chocolate." I hear this little echo in the sweetest voice. Thank goodness for that DVD player in the car, because if she didn't have that to focus on she'd surely be repeating a lot worse things! Sometimes she says things and I ask TJ, "Did she learn that from you?" Nothing horrible... just certain words or phrases she must have gotten from Dora, or random encounters with people at the park or store. It is just sometimes shocking when you hear your daughter say something you know you've never said to her. I'm sure this isn't the last time you'll hear me say that as she grows up! And speaking of growing up, that Milla has turned into such a little girl. She's just about the loveliest thing. She was an adorable baby, and now she is even more of a headturner. I look at her and wonder how she got so beautiful. (And I don't mean to leave Lil out of this conversation - I just still think of Lil as a little baby with little baby cuteness while Milla - you can see more what she'll look like as an adult.) Oh, almost forgot! Milla made it onto the disney website in a teeny tiny picture from the photoshoot we did last November, I think it was. Here's the link: http://disneyshopping.go.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/CategoryDisplay?catalogId=10002&storeId=10051&categoryId=11764&langId=-1&N=0&Ntk=p_categoryID&Ntt=11764&Nu=p_productID I can't believe they actually used a picture of her. She was such a little diva and refused to look at the camera. :) We didn't go out for auditions for a long while because of her moodiness, but she is starting to like getting her picture taken again so maybe we'll try soon. If you haven't been to our website lately, you can see just how much fun we all have at http://www.milandlil.com. Our life is blessed and we don't forget it! I'd write more about it, but I gotta go live some more! :) Alysa

Oh my goodness! 2007 is almost over ?!?!?

Alysa — Sun, 23 Dec 2007 01:32:44 GMT

So I find myself receiving "year-end" holiday letters from friends and tell myself, yup... gotta send one of those out! But mostly I'm thinking - another year is over already? How fast the time is flying. I guess this year some major things happened for us. Let's see... We started 2007 with one 14-month-old, and are finishing the year with a 2 year old and a 10-month old! Lil is so amazing; it's hard to believe she's been with us less than a year. And Milla has grown from a ridiculously cute baby into a ridiculously cute little girl! I know if you're reading this you've probably been looking at all their pictures I've posted (for all their lives!) on their website, so you know what I'm talking about. Those girls are funny, heartwarming, heartwrenching, loving, lovable, and so eager to learn and go! I can picture them as they grow together and I can't wait. They already have a close bond, I can tell. Lil just is not happy if Milla isn't around unless she has full parental attention. The second her sister comes home or wakes from her nap she gets all excited. Milla is a good big sister most of the time. She'll bring Lil toys and whenever we go out without "sister" Milla points it out like something is missing. "Sister" is what Milla calls Lil, and it sounds so adorable! I think their favorite time is playing with Daddy and his creative jungle gyms or slides made out of mattresses and blankets. They'll fall all over each other and just laugh so hard. Whenever Milla does something Lil can't, you can find Lil watching intensely, enjoying seeing her sister, and thinking she wants to try it too, no doubt! How can I start telling you all the adorable things Milla does? Her vocabulary is quite good now, and I think the most endearing thing lately is her "I miss", which either means "I miss you" or "I love you". We didn't teach her this, which makes it all the better. It's something she just picked up from being told she was missed, and now she says it to me all the time, whether or not I've been away! She'll come running and give me a big hug, or curl up into my lap and say "I miss." Then she'll look up at me, smile, and then close her eyes and snuggle her head into my chest. Can I bottle that moment and sell it? Everyone should be able to experience a moment like that! And actually, Milla does provide lots of people with special moments. Perhaps not the "I miss", but she'll go up to total strangers and say "Hi!" nice and loud with her hand waving, or she'll go grab their leg or crawl into their lap. She's so outgoing and the love just pours out of her. I think she knows that everyone can use a hug, so she gives out many. Even when she's strapped into a shopping cart, she seems to draw people in. Whenever we go out I'd say 4 out of 5 people stop to talk to her or comment on how adorable she is. Back at home the "Milla Show" continues in it's development. The actress in her performs often, throwing herself dramatically on the floor or the couch if she doesn't get her way. She's also got a mean pout, but an even better wink, smile, and way of blowing a kiss. Her laugh is contagious. I'd have to ask TJ, but I think I've started to laugh like her rather than the other way around. The dancer in her comes out at least once a day now. Grandma Maria bought her a pair of tap shoes that are used quite frequently, and whenever music is on, she likes to spread out a particular blanket she calls "Daddy's Blue" and dance on it. TJ's blanket got it's name as a derivative from Milla's favorite blanket, which she named "Blue" (and yes, it is blue.) And what about Lil? Liliana... Lil... Lili... Sister... The Hammer... She's got a lot of names and a lot of personality. As TJ says, she smiles with her whole face, and when she's mad, oh... that scream makes your ears bleed! She is a (large) bundle of strength and energy. I totally am living the old truth that the second child learns and does more quickly than the first. Lil watches her older sister and wants to reach everything she reaches, play with everything she plays with, eat whatever she eats, and follow her around. She is a fierce crawler, stands up with ease, stands solid without holding onto anything, and climbs on just about anything she can. She's a pretty long kid, so it's shocking how much she can reach with a one crawl, two crawl, and grab! I think the worst thing she likes to grab is Milla's hair. She clearly says Momma, ball, and go, and I know she understands a lot more. At 9 and 1/2 months, she still only has one tooth. She's still mostly just breastfed, but is starting to go through baby food as well with zest. She too has a great laugh and that big smile is just a mindbender. When she is excited she moves her body up and down and she can hold onto things so tightly! The two toughest things to wrench out of her grasp are my wallet and my camera. Hmm... I think trouble lies ahead! In Mommy and Daddy news, we are still at the beach and haven't made too much progress in our house plans. TJ left his job in July to take care of his girls, fix up the house, and explore the real estate market, which of course is not doing so well. It's still being explored, just not invested in! I have been doing more and more photography, stage and "headshots", and a lot of actor photosheet development. I also took two courses toward getting a real estate license. Much of both of our mindshare (what's left after the girls destroy most of it) is devoted to dreaming up the house we intend to build here. It's such a great creative endeavor; I could totally see us becoming a designing team! In sad news for the year, I lost my beloved Winnie, as most of you know. She was such a beautiful dog, inside and out and she is missed dearly. I'm so thankful I could give her a wonderful, loving life for the years I had her, and that she taught me so much. Her memorial page is still up if anyone wants to revisit her life. We still have the incredible Titan, who is just great with the kids. Milla doesn't want much to do with him, but Lil crawls all over him. She laughs whenever he noses up to her, and I've had to remove the jowls from her grasp a few times. I hope that gives you an idea of our lives and how blessed we are. Our needs are simple and aside from one trip this year that almost proved too much to handle, we keep our lives pretty simple too. But as I type that I know that most people know me are probably laughing, knowing what my idea of simple is! Happy Holidays everyone! Make it real, make it "green", make it beautiful! :) Alysa & Family

What Can I Say?

Alysa — Fri, 16 Nov 2007 06:43:38 GMT

So I said I was going to blog more. So I said I was going to keep a journal. I guess I'm heading toward making that my New Year's Resolution since it hasn't been happening! We've been SO busy. I guess my life will return to having time for such things in, say, 17 years? These girls of ours are just truly incredible. Oh sure, it's a lot of work, and it should be - I mean we are growing two human beings!! TJ joked that we were going to have kids for our own entertainment, and I'm glad to say so far the show has been hilarious! What a journey. Everyday something cracks us up. It might be Milla and any one of her dramatic looks, or squeals over learning something new. Or it might be Lil crawling all over her sister or getting so excited waving her arms and legs around you think she's going to take off! Actually, on any given day, it's all those things. Milla is so smart and stubborn! If she doesn't want to do something, I just have no idea how to make her using any type of negotiation. Nothing works. When she decides she doesn't want to do something, I swear she can't even hear what I'm saying! Most of the time she's a sweetheart, and thankfully, does not push her sister around, even when she's crawling on her or taking her toys. Usually it's things like when I want to take her picture. She will purposefully turn away from the camera and will steadfastly remain so until I put the camera away. Lil has gotten the nickname "The Hammer". It started out with TJ calling her Lillehammer, after the city, and it stuck as her behavior and size grew into her name. I have visions of when she's in high school or college being announced at whatever sport she plays as Lili "the hammer" Brennan! The kid is huge! At 8 and 1/2 months she is still mostly breastfed and is at the top of the charts. She is so strong too! Oh, and strong minded I should add (two of them... oh no!) She is a go-getter, crawling, climbing, standing. I bet it won't be long until she'll be walking. She's only behind in one department - no teeth yet! Considering the breastfeeding part... I'm glad! Milla just turned two this week and we just had a small party with her family in San Diego, and another family cake at home. Two years has gone by in a flash. She was just a baby and now she's a little girl. As much as I thought we wouldn't fall into the media/marketing blitz, she is in love with Dora the Explorer. At least it's a little educational! :) Well, we've got another busy day ahead of us, and weekend. It's been warm this week and the beach has been calling us, so hopefully we'll fit that in. For all of you not in SoCal I know that drives you crazy - the beach in November! Don't worry; I'll post pictures! :) Alysa

Kids are Amazing

Alysa — Sat, 25 Aug 2007 07:11:00 GMT

I just had to sit down and write tonight. There are so many things that happen day to day with my little girls that are so inspriing and amazing and I think, if I don't write these things down, I'm going to forget! I know I've forgotten so much about when Milla May was Lil's age, and that was just a year and a half ago! Oh, where to start? Seeing your child learn things and enjoy things is simply an incredible experience. The fact that you get to witness this several times a day makes it all the more remarkable an experience. I'll just have to share a few. * Whenever Milla May is impressed by something she utters the cutest "wow!" It is so pure and adorable it makes me smile everytime. Recent wows have been the Goodyear Blimp, the moon shining on the ocean, odd things on TV, and so many others I'm mad at myself for not remembering! *In the past few days, I can see Lil really starting to enjoy Milla. She smiles a huge grin whenever she comes near and loves to sit next to her and watch her. Of course, she also wants to play with whatever Milla is playing with, which usually generates a huge (or several) "No!" from Milla. *Milla is really getting the hang of the toilet! She really is becoming a big girl! *Lil is spoiled to all heck, but is just as charming as can be. She already knows what she wants and gets frustrated when she doesn't get it. She is finally getting the hang of a longer nap.... phew! *Milla's latest favorite thing is shaved ice. No flavoring... just ice! We pulled out an old ice machine and now she asks for it all the time. Did I mention she has the cutest "please"? *Lil can now sit facing forward in the stroller next to big sis and loves seeing the world come at her. She's also quite fond of Milla's sippy cups with the straws. I think Milla likes having her sit next to her like that. *Both girls are very physically inclined. Milla loves to dance, although at present her favorite move reminds me way too much of Elaine from Seinfeld. Jumping and running are big favs too. Lil rolls and wiggles all over the place. She sits up well on her own now. A goal for this weekend is to get a diary going so I can write down daily the incredible happenings of the Brennan girls! Goodnight! Alysa

New Website is Up and About Time!

Alysa — Sun, 15 Apr 2007 21:13:00 GMT

So with a new baby blogging is the last thing on my mind! I just will have to fit it in somehow... I'm creating two new websites - one for family (http://www.milandlil.com) and one for my photography (http://www.alysabrennan.com). Mil and Lil's site will be done soon (this is 4/14) and the other... who knows! The alysazanden.com will still remain active for the older stuff for now. I want to go finish the website photos, so this is just a little blog to tease you... I'll do more when I find that long lost time!!

Milla and ...!!!

Alysa — Sun, 17 Sep 2006 07:27:39 GMT

So I'm posting another blog since I'm about to update her (our) website again. If you'd like to check it out go to http://www.alysazanden.com/other/camilla/camilla.html. So Milla is now 10 months old! She is very physical, but also we think quite intelligent. I think she's grasped some pretty cool concepts. Examples... I rolled a ball, and it went under the rocking chair. Oh no, I thought, she's going to try and follow it under the chair. But then it rolled out the back of it, and around the side toward the wall. Smart girl that she is, she waited until it stopped, then just went directly to it, not having to follow it's path. I thought that was pretty cool. Another... same ball rolled under the open cabinet doors. Two were back to back, so she couldn't quite reach the ball because the doors were in the way. She figured out that she could close a door, then reach right under and get her ball! She has also mastered sliding down off of furniture backwards, or going down a step backwards. She does it now without direction, which is important because going down face first wouldn't be so good! She is starting to work her vocabulary a bit more, but is still enjoying making stranger noises to express herself than silly English. Oh... she is fabulous! She worked a few modeling jobs in the past month, but it is getting harder for her to sit still. Unlike the other babies who are content to sit there and watch people making faces or singing to her, she just wants to move, and get things, pick them up and play with them. I don't know if we'll keep doing the modeling thing forever - we'll just have to see how it goes. But in the meantime, she is getting a lot of jobs and building a nice little college or travel fund! If you want to check out some older photos of her that finally came out, go to www.hannaanderson.com, and click on the main bar to view their virtual catalog, then click on the Winter one. Their is a picture of her in purple and turqouise stripes on page 39, and a full-page picture of her dressed up as a boy on page 73! That's my little Milla, from way back in early May! OK... So I'm going to slip something in here. I haven't announced it yet, though I've told many people. I don't really know why I haven't just blurted it out, but I think it has to do with how much we are enjoying Milla. We are expecting another baby! I'm already in my 4th month, and we are due March 6th!! Yes, life is moving along! We wanted them close together, and we got it - they will be 16 months apart. Best guess is it will probably be another girl. I'm taking suggestions on names, preferably those derived from flowers (Camilla is a derivative of Camellia), for first or middle name. So the Brennan clan is growing and it is a little crazy to think of how much more love we have around us now with Milla, and that that will grow again with this new baby. It's also strange to think of how tiny and fragile this baby will be - of course, just like Milla was - but that seems like so long ago! It is so cool to toss her around and hug her tight, and it's almost like you have to hold yourself back with a newborn because they are so delicate. It will be really neat to see Milla with her little sister or brother. We had a friend with a 3 month old visit last week and Milla was fascinated, and learned quickly to touch gently. (My smart little girl!) Anyway, I have to go to bed! I'm wasting precious sleep time, but I wanted to write another issue! :) alysa

Da-da!

Alysa — Thu, 31 Aug 2006 20:59:21 GMT

OK... this time it's unmistakable. Milla loves to play with the phone when it rings, especially when I put it on speakerphone. So when TJ calls, I put him on so she can hear him. Two days ago TJ called as usual in the morning, and Milla got very excited. I said "It's Daddy!" and she clearly responded back with "Da Da." She said it more than once too! Then he called back later that day, and she did the same thing!! The next day he called, but this time no "dada". Oh well... I guess it was just a fluke. Rats! But today, we're back on! In fact, today it sounded even more clearly like "Daddy", which is TJ's preferred title. I think today it was unmistakable. So I'm going to officially say that Daddy is Milla's first word. Now, she alls cries out "Momma" when she's very upset, but I don't count that because she doesn't do it any other time. She is getting very good at mimicking words, but I don't think she really comprehends that they belong to certain objects yet like "Daddy". Some of her common terms are "doggie", "duck", "ball", and "baba" for bottle. I think that's pretty good for nine months! She is so physical and strong and just simply delightful. She waves this days at just about everybody, and oh forgot - also clearly said "bye bye" after I did. She also is an expert clapper, and loves to watch singing on TV - cartoons or otherwise. She's still hungry for lots of new foods. A couple of her favorites are Daddy's fried chicken (she doensn't get the fried part), and refried beans! There's a little Mexican in her somewhere, though you wouldn't know it by looking at her. Her hair is coming in more and in the sun it looks quite blond/reddish. Simply beautiful! :) alysa

I'm a really lazy blogger... but more about Milla!

Alysa — Sun, 13 Aug 2006 05:23:34 GMT

Thank you Beej for your comment - and now I must blog again! How many amazing things have happened in the last few months? Today is Milla's 9th Month birthday! About a month and a half ago she started getting teeth! About two weeks ago she started to crawl and everyday gets faster and more confident in her physicality. She has developed an amazing curiosity for food - everything I eat she has to try. Tonight it was Indian food! It is so neat to see your little one's personality develop, even if you are afraid of what that might mean for the future! My particular case - I can tell Milla has attitude as she talks back. Whenever she does something I don't want her to do, namely put something in her mouth, I tell her "uh-uh", and I say it with a little energy and curtness. She almost always replies back with a forceful grunt, then usually shakes whatever she was trying to eat and throws it to the side! At least she responds by stopping the activity, but she has to let me know she's not happy about it! She has also definitely developed familiar associations. I admit I let her watch TV, mostly Noggin, the commercial-free kids channel. And yes, friends, we do with some frequency see our dear fearless Mike Messer and his group singing to the little ones. Anyhow, she gets so excited whenever she sees Joe, the dark haired guy from Blues Clues, and - get this - Jon Stewart. Yup - my kid loves political smart asses (emphasis on smart). Not that she's up that late - I record my shows and watch them when I can - thank you TiVo! Milla also really responds to music. Whenever we are in the car I tend to have on my oldies channel and sing along with almost every song. She almost always hollers along in some fashion - that is, until she falls asleep. She was also really enjoying Les Miserables the other day. Oh - I almost forgot her newest favorite pastime - the dogs! At first (last week) it was enough to just crawl up to them and play with their tails. Now she is reaching all over them. Winnie usually gets up and moves away, but Titan will take just about anything. Tonight she was crawling all over him, and even trying to stick her fingers in his ear and mouth. While he seems rather complacent about it all I know we'll have to keep an eye on that! She also loves watching them run around the yard and bark. I think one of her first words will be "doggie" or "TiTi", which is what I call Titan. Now that she's asleep I have some time to work on updating the website - another month is over already!

Finally - I'm blogging!

Alysa — Sat, 17 Jun 2006 05:49:16 GMT

I've been wanting to blog, or journal, for a while. It was just one thing on my list that wasn't getting done. When I first found out I was pregnant, it seemed too many articles and books and magazines were telling me to journal what I was feeling. Well, always being one to shun being mainstream, I told myself that I wasn't going to journal just because that's what most women do when they have a baby. My baby is now 7 months old. And I haven't yet journaled. I have been experiencing her to the fullest, but I started getting troubled. Talking to people that I haven't talked to in a while, I would relate to them some of my baby girl's milestones. Oh, yes, she smiled at 5 weeks... first laughed at... first stood up at... at... As I tried to recount this precious firsts I realized that already the timeline was blurry. It all seemed so clear when these things happened - like I would never forget. And I won't forget how I felt seeing these things, but I also want to retain some data, some record of them for her to read for herself, and for family and friends who aren't here to see them to at least read about them. It seems odd, but that of all baby "firsts", this is the one that prompted me to write this: yesterday Milla clapped her hands - intentionally, and skillfully clapped her hands! She made that clap sound and everything! I wasn't prodding her to do it, or teaching her. I just clapped at something she did and she put those little hands of hers together - in out in out in out - and clapped. She got so excited!! Now it's one of her favorite things to do. She babbles to herself and occasionally claps... and it's just the cutest darn thing. OK... can I really say cutest? There are so many cute things - her laugh, her eyes when they get big, her fast breathing when she's excited, her peaceful sleeping, especially clutching her little baby doll. Ah, yes, I've fallen hard for this little girl. She just enthralls me more each day.